and Rey Misterio, Sr. XLUM's premiere event of 2004 entitled Jaulamania drew a sold-out crowd to see El Hijo del Santo on top, while Pearce and his cohorts worked underneath, and ran in on a bloody cage match, attacking Damián 666 and Halloween. Other notable matches included a wild 8-Man-Tag filmed by Fox Sports Español which saw Pearce and his partners (Al Katrazz, Aaron Aguilera, and Jason Allgood) brawl all over the famous Auditorio de Tijuana. Pearce eventually turned babyface, even cutting promos in Spanish as part of his Dusty Rhodes-esque character. Pearce left Mexico when XLUM folded in early 2005. Pearce also became involved with New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Los Angeles dojo and trained there in addition to being a part of their short-lived television product, Toukon Fighting Spirit, which aired for six weeks in Los Angeles County. Pearce was involved in a storyline with NJPW talent Toru Yano, which eventually led to them tagging as "The Beer and Sake Connection". This led to Pearce's Japanese debut for New Japan Pro-Wrestling on May 15, 2005, at the Tokyo Dome in a dark match against Don Frye's sparring partner, George Castro. Pearce was additionally offered a tour in place of Florida-based wrestler Steve Madison, but was forced to decline due to work obligations. Ring of Honor (2005–2010) In July 2005, Pearce debuted for Full Impact Pro in Florida, facing Sal Rinauro and Azrieal. Pearce credits CM Punk, Cabana, Samoa Joe, Daniels and Steel with receiving a booking in FIP. From FIP, he moved into Ring of Honor (ROH). Pearce appeared at ROH's Glory by Honor IV show in September 2005. At that point, the storyline had him displeased with the way Commissioner Jim Cornette had been treating him, not giving him high-quality matches or title shots. This booking continued until January 2006, when Pearce became involved in ROH's war with Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) by challenging, and then pulling Necro Butcher over the rail at a show in Cleveland, Ohio. For this feud, Pearce set aside his differences with Cornette and became one of the main ROH wrestlers leading the fight against CZW. Because of Pearce's speaking and promo skills, he was appointed Lieutenant Commissioner of ROH during the storyline to voice Cornette's intentions on ROH events that he could not attend. During the seven month feud, Pearce was a part of many brawls with CZW's Chris Hero and Necro Butcher,